Halo: Genesis of Faith
by Steven Winter
Summary: After the Didacts reveal, the world remains shaken and many questions are unanswered. Special Ops team Victor-Nine has been tasked with the retrieval of these answers, following a signal deep into space to what they believe holds the clues. What they do uncover though, could mean the end of life itself, and to survive- they need to have faith in the very creation they fear.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey, this is my first chapter in my story. Just want to see if people like it first. Some aspects are completely inspired by Fall of Reach novel, but i promise that after this it will be all me. Just needed to nail the language used. The story takes place after Halo 4, i'm trying to make the story canon-like without needing making it required so i can daydream it is . It's basically a side story. Comments appreciated_

**-CHAPTER 1-**

**0100 hours, August 30, 2557 (Military Calendar)\Sol System, ship: Class\Stealth Fighter\Genesis of Faith, Crew Six.**

Sergeant Major Enrick Winter woke abruptly, chocking for air. Dull amber lights blurred his vision as he coughed on the slime in his lungs and throat.

"Sit up Sergeant Winter," The composed female voice instructed. "Sit, then take a deep breathe and cough, you need to clear your airway from the built up fluid."

Sergeant Winter pushed himself forward from the cryo-tube, his back peeling off the formfitting gel bed. Wisps of smoke drifted around him as he clumsily climbed out. Falling against the side of the pod, he tried to inhale before doubling over, coughing until a long strand of clear liquid showed from his open mouth.

He then stood up and drew his first full breath in a month. He licked his lips and almost regurgitated. Cryo inhalant- it was meant to reimburse lost nutrients over the course of deep sleep. No matter what they did to try improve the formula, it never tasted good, seeming to resemble lime-flavored mucus.

"Status, What's our status Vadumee?" He requested.

"Status Normal, we are approximately twenty minutes from Earth, Sergeant." The A.I. replied. Winter coughed again. "Are the others awake yet? Are we still concealed?"

"Confirmation on both. The captain is awaiting you on the Bridge sir."

They were on board the Genesis of Faith. It was returning to Earth after a yearlong voyage from the outer depths of space, cut short by few a extra years for an unforeseen reason. When active it prioritized to locate and neutralize any Covenant fanatics left over from the war, the typical cloak-and-dagger activities expected from ONI operatives. Or was until a message requested their immediate homecoming. He didn't know why, but he wasn't in a position to question FLEETCOM HQ. He nodded to the A.I. in understanding.

Looking around, Sergeant Winter shoved himself off the tube stumbled towards his locker. Quickly tapping in the code before pressing in a thumb. The device hummed for a second before flashing green and announced "WELCOME WINTER". The storeroom door slid open revealing the contents. He reached in and grabbed his uniform, to which he began covering his naked self.

"How long has everyone been up Vadumee?" He asked, buckling his belt

"Three hours, twenty-one minutes and fifteen seconds Sergeant." The A.I. responded curtly.

"Any reason for my holdup?" He asked annoyed, shutting the locker.

"The Captain specifically requested this before everyone went into deep sleep." Vadumee informed him. Winter grunted in response, irritated at the decision. It was odd; he mustn't be in the good books with the captain right now. He tightened his collar and straightened out his uniform. If the captain had it out for him, he was going to have to try a lot harder at being nice- something that wasn't his in his list of accomplishments. He wiped his brow as beads of sweat trickled down. He wasn't scared of combat or dying, but it was common knowledge you didn't screw with a spook.

"You appear nervous Sergeant." Vadumee observed, her smooth voice interrupting his train of thought.

"No reason for concern Vadumee." Winter lied, adjusting his cap, before turning to a silver metallic casing next to him. He accessed the data pad near to it and called Bridge. The black screen was immediately replaced with their communications expert, Jackson Kennedy, a man who worked as hard just as much as gabbed- which was a lot.

"Well hey, look who's awake," He beamed "Tell me Sarg, how was being under ice for the past few hours like?"

"The same experience as you standing to attention for a few hours Private," Winter replied dryly. Clearly getting the memo, Kennedy sat straighter in his chair and asked "Is there anything I can help you with sir?" Winter stopped and paused, considering what he needed "Yeah, tell Gaz and the others to start prepping for landing."

Kennedy nodded and started issuing the commands "They're aware of it sir, you'll find everything up n' running by the time we hit ground."

"Thanks Private, inform the Captain of my oncoming arrival."

"Aye aye sir, she'll be pleased to know."

The Bridge was relatively large compared to other ships, meaning, it offered the space of a minute bedroom for up to six people to strut around. A fully dressed clean-shaven Sergeant Winter entered the chamber and closed the pressurized door behind him. Every space not containing a seat was full of monitors and screens. In front of him lay a large holographic view point detailing mission essentials and ship statistics, and beyond it showed the horizon of Earth. He snapped to attention and announced himself in full salute. "Reporting as requested, Ma'am." His eyes flickered to the communication station where Kennedy was hard at work, the monitor in front of him had walls of text flickering about. Near him was the captain, with her black hair pulled back in a knot; she was fixated on a screen that projected what appeared to be city. When she didn't respond he cleared his throat, he didn't even know her name.

"Yes sergeant, come in." She dismissed, still focused on the screen. Sergeant Winter hesitated before walking over to her.

He knew the captain was too absorbed on whatever was on the monitor to bother her; any interruption and the results wouldn't be pretty. He remembered the last time someone had, she just stared him down before pulling out her magnum and fired a single shot into the left knee-cap, resulting in the armor piercing rounds puncturing through the bone and possibly restricting him standing up again, he never saw the bastard after that. Had anyone else done it, they would have found themselves instantly court-martialed; only anyone else wasn't part of ONI section III. He stood there for a few minutes admiring the image of Earth before she glanced at him.

"Are you going to stand there Winter or put yourself to good use." She stared at him with her cold blue eyes before returning to the screen. Winter was about to reply when something got caught in his throat. He composed himself and pushed the panic down. Straitening out his jacket, he said,

"Ma'am, any reason why I was under ice for so long." As soon as he mentioned it he instantly regretted the decision, but he still waited for the response. Still staring at the screen she finally expressed herself,

"Reasons I have yet to explain Sergeant until a later time," the disinterest in her voice was obvious. She moved to a keypad and entered in a command. The image on screen zoomed in closer, pointing her hand to the screen she questioned, "Tell me Winter, what do you notice about this picture." Sergeant Enrick Winter followed her hand to the depiction. He moved forward and leaned in, his eyes squinting at the details. It was a clean-cut city, everything made from the typical lifestyle one would expect in the inner colonies. The picture contained some cars and the traditional white colour palette used in every wealthy city. The only detail that seemed to be missing was the lack of any life.

"It appears to be a city, a city without civilians." He observed, taking a step back, he stared at the captain confused, "Why is it so empty?" She nodded her head in understanding, ordering another instruction into the computer.

The image was immediately replaced with a wall of text. She looked it over and calmly stated,

"This is the list of everyone dead from the incident," before tapping in another command, the text was then exchanged for the image of a large ship. It was made from thick organic metal; with illuminating arrange streaks running across the surface. In the center of it was a brilliant disc shaped eye "This is what caused it, an occurrence from a forerunner artifact called the Composer. But the how and why are details left vague even to me, not for you however." She turned back to Winter, her pale skin reflecting the image and held out a blue disc, with ONI engraved in the center, it was a data-pad. Winter reached out and tenderly held the object before slowly bringing to his left pocket. She didn't have to say anything, he was supposed to look at this, and in doing so meant he was undertaking a task from ONI itself. He made a mental note to check at it later. The captain regarded the disc before calling out.

"Vadumee, what's out ETA." In direct response the A.I appeared in the center of the room. Winter took a moment to admire the form it had chosen to represent itself. It wasn't the most antiquate or artistic, but it all always held him in awe. Hued in green, the appearance was clearly a female Sangheili, even if the difference between their genders was minimal. Her designation was derived from the name Rinev' Vadumee, a Sangheili scholar. The A.I had selected this as it had thought it might help bridge the cultural difference in their long voyage. Though it held him in wonder, Winter still felt uneasy upon seeing it, a good soldier never forgot an enemy.

"ETA is in five minutes captain." It declared, crossing its arms. "Recommend you start prepping the shuttle for landing." The captain waived her hand in dismissal, clearly not interested until needed.

"In a sec Vadumee', Kennedy contact HQ and let them know were coming in. We don't want any accidents during touchdown."

"Yes ma'am." The private tapped into communications grid and started traversing the coms. Winters observed him with curiosity, looking out for the quirks in his behavior, such as how he was tapping his foot to a rhythm; he only did it when he was stressed. Something must have happened before he got here. Taking his attention off Kennedy he turned towards the A.I. in the center of the room. She detected the notion and turned her head towards him quizzically.

"Can I help you Winter?" Its glare appeared intimidating, Winter stopped and paused, wondering how to continue when the captain cut in.

"Winter stop fumbling about and take a spot, I need our ship controls manned. Vadumee, you can start prepping the shuttle" The A.I flickered and disappeared, Winter immediately turned around, infuriated at his gap in focus. It was how soldiers got themselves killed. _Stay focused _he scolded himself as he glided towards his station.

Easily slipping into the seat and buckling himself in, Winter flicked a few switches to operate the controls before activating the ships secondary thrusters. Manually converting power from sub-systems that didn't require the energy into the engines, shutting off the sectors where even life support now failed. The ship started droning in response, the thrusters going through their cycles in increasing levels of speed. Leaning back in satisfaction, Winter pulled out a piece of gum and threw it into his mouth and smirked. It was his favorite way of relieving stress, made him feel like he had control for some reason. He turned to the captain and joked

"Ma'am, you think we're gonna have a welcome home party." He grinned, trying to lighten the situation up.

"No sergeant."

She didn't even smile. That was one aspect about her, which crept Enrick out: her lack of humanity. Rumors had told him of spooks being like that, but her never believed them to be true until this assignment. Not once out of the last year did she even appear pleased. Winter shuddered and went back to the monitor; he had been assigned to this op after three years of no service. He was an ex-ODST, and one the best infiltration experts that had ever lived, capable of killing an entire camp of enemy soldiers in one night given the chance. It had made him widely valued during service, and broadly sought for after. He's still not sure why he left, after the war he thought he would try and live a normal life, an attempt at regaining what humanity he had lost himself. All he got was bottle of beer every night to sleep with, and a few fists to befriend. Whatever it was, he sure as hell knew it wasn't living. Having just about given up, he was offered a job one day. Classified right down to the date in which he received the message, it was asking if he'd needed work and told him of a meeting. He went because he didn't what he left to lose, and when he happened upon the captain, she took him without question and became reinstated. He still doesn't why he chose this over them drunk nights.

"Captain we are hitting atmo in ten seconds. You might want to take a seat." Kennedy cut in, prepping the recoils. The captain nodded, and made way to her station, strapping herself in. Winter checked his straps and tightened the harness, last time he forgot had sent him to the other side of the room. The ship started shuddering, as their descent into Earth began. He glanced over to Kennedy, poor guy hated drops. He had his eyes closed and was in his usual state of shock, muttering profanities to himself. Winter though, he was used to it, you needed to be when the tagline for an ODST was 'droppin feet first into hell'. Vadumee flickered into existence, apparent boredom over her face. A.I.'s seemed to lack any fear.

"Ma'am, you've got ONI guests on site. Winter is to accompany you."

"Acknowledged Vadumee." The captain gritted, her teeth chattering. The A.I. snapped her fingers and replaced herself with a countdown sequence. It announced the procedure. _Ah shit,_ Winter thought, can't be good a thing when the spooks want to catch up.

"Please make yourselves comfortable," Vadumee said "We'll be landing in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three and we have officially landed." The ship lurched forward suddenly, the ground trembling upon impact. The hull hissed as air made its way through, visible traces of the air current moving about the room.

"Kindly wait while decompression is occurring." The current started dying down and eventually the sound as well with every passing second.

"Compression levels: Normal. Ship status: Normal. You are clear to exit the vessel." The A.I. chimed. Winter reached down and unbuckled his strap, while on the way out he patted Kennedy on the shoulder, who still had his eyes shut. When he neared the exit Vadumee announced,

"Welcome to Earth."


	2. Chapter 2- The Battlefield is home

**-CHAPTER 2-**

**2330 hours, July 26, 2552 (Military Calendar)\Epsilon Eridani System, TwinSnake Hills, planet Reach**

"Contact. All units stand by: Enemy spotted, my position."

Winter knew there would be more of them, by the hills- but his orders weren't to kill. His team needed to slip past covenant borders and locate Project Nomad. Quietly easing his binoculars down, he motioned for his squad to fall in.

The three members that composed Zulu-Four covered his back, all discreet as they treaded forward, only halting when they reached him. Now silent and immobile, their ODST armor disregarded any moon-light that ventured on them. Ruthless and effective… they were the peak of physical excellence short of becoming a Spartan. But even a Spartan was ill-fitted for this task.

He grabbed the silenced M7 caseless off his belt, the rounds were self contained and weren't as deadly as the M5, but stealth was imperative in this op.

On the hills below he saw a cave, with eroded rock for walls and a thin stream traversing through it… and camped alongside the entrance for as far as he could see were grunts- the covenants version of cannon fodder. Their stocky armor protected their meager meter tall selves, it was an environmental suit designed to replicate their home worlds atmosphere. Their guttural growls, barks and high-pitched squeaks reminded Winter of biped dogs. Their intelligence ranked just above dogs too, but they made up for their lack in intellect with sheer tenacity. He remembered watching them throw themselves upon soldiers fire until the ground was piled high with their dead bodies… and the ammunition of the marines were low.

Among them were a few Elites, their huge physiques ordering the little guys around. He recalled sighting the buggers armed with needlers, plasma pistols and a few plasma turrets outside the entrance- unusually well armed. Those might be a problem, coupled alongside the population numbering in the thousands and you had an even bigger problem.

The mission had to go off smoothly, no hitches or things back base would head down the *******. The objective was in that damn cave, and sneaking past would prove impossible.

Winter regarded the entrance with concern and turned back to his team. They already knew the situation. He started a secure COM channel- short wave.

"Four of us," Miller whispered over the link "And a thousand of them? I say it's condition SNAFU."

"Miller," Winter said, "I want those Jackhammer missiles up top on that ridge. Take out the cannons and soften the rest of them. Jackson, you're with him. Sam, you follow me up- we're on that cave. Once those two hand out the welcome mat we'll make our way in through that undergrowth next to it. Understood?"

He got three nods of the head. They all knew the plan.

"Okay, lets move people, we're wasting time." Winter started making way down the ridge to the hills, with Sam covering the back. No sound was made as the two gracefully traversed the terrain. He was confidant Miller would reach the top and dish out the pain. Otherwise no one was going to make it out of this alive. Slowing down when they reached the bottom, Winter signaled to the left.

Two grunts had made lee-way from the camp, a choice that had proved fatal. Drawing out his combat knife Winter slowly crept up on the enemy unaware. Sam kept his sights on them in case anything went wrong, and unless he could get a clean shot to the head, the bullets would only useless.

Upon reaching them Winter lashed out, sinking his combat blade deep in the head of the grunt. It stiffened and created a deep gurgling sound. The grunt to the left noticed and jumped up in surprise, raising it's plasma pistol. Before it could get off a shot, a puff of blood escaped from its skull. The silenced round from Sam had hit its mark.

The grunt toppled sideways and didn't move. Winter looked back at him.

"You ought to be careful sir, might find yourself dead one day."

"Only if you join, Sam." He grinned; this is where he belonged, on the battlefield.

Sam nodded his head to the side, Winter saw he was indicating at the bushes. Pushing himself up he made his way into the vegetation, shrugging off any branches. They were almost there.

Sneaking their way up to the location, he needed that distraction now. He opened up the COM channel,

"Miller, Jackson. Where's my welcome party." He whispered, aiming up his sights on an Elite. He received static until the channel cracked and popped,

"_Yeah yeah. Hang on boss. Setting up missiles now, three, two, one. Mark."_

Winter looked up and saw two rockets propel themselves into the turrets in quick succession. One turret flipped over engulfed in fire while the other was a charred heap of metal. Two more streaks followed and landed into the dazed crowds of covenant. Consecutive booms that saw bodies flying.

Winter started making his way past the frontline when an Elite marched in front of him. Gun raised.

"Tango dead ahead sir!" Sam called, vaulting headfirst, and opened fire. Winter did the same- a full automatic concentrated fire.

The rounds flickered against the shield until it failed erupting in a bright shower; it hollered in anger, charging them. But the only obstacle left was the flesh- which proved to be no problem. The rounds tore through the elite, breaching the armor. Blue blood squirted from the standing corpse, as it fell down, plasma fire bursting in wide arcs.

Around him grunts ran around in confusion and pain.

Finally they realized what was happening- and where the enemy was. They regrouped and charged in _e'masse._

"****. Fallback Sam, Fallback!." Winter yelled, backpedaling into the cave. Sam and Winter exhausted their clips, together as they kept off the oncoming surge. Line after line they dropped, their bodies piling on top of the other as hundreds more took their place. Plasma fire spat around them, creating an intense heat aura in the vicinity.

"GRENADE!" Sam called, skipping to the side. Winter looked up and saw the blue fury arcing towards his position. He leapt to the right, dodging the ball narrowly. The grenade belched an intense wave of plasma.

Landing on his feet Winter opened the COM link.

"Miller, where's my fire support. I need more missiles on my position."

"_Acknowledged sir, bringing in the pain."_

More streaks landed into the flood of grunts, tearing their fragile bodies apart. Sam and Winter turned heel and ran further into the cave. Additional dull thumps reverberated through the tunnel the further they went in.

"_Welcome party laid out sir."_

"Copy that Miller, were heading into the center. I want eyes on our exit."

Winter shut off the COM, and moved forward. This wasn't a traditional cave, ONI had built a command post in the center of the valley under a skylight. It reflected any observer outside from seeing anything but rocks and the cave entrance was simply a natural way of making regulars ignore it.

They finally emerged under the said skylight. Inside was a vast area of barracks and garrisons stationed next to Intel positions. There was no need for a conventional base here, as there was already a roof. Winter glanced up, the top was easily one hundred meters above. High enough for a banshee to fly comfortably. Facing ground level again, he sighted additional grunts accumulating on their position. There was no way to avoid this after the first shot was fired outside.

"I think they like us." Sam commented, opening fire again. Winter did the same, holding down on the trigger as an earthquake descended on them. Bullets shredded into the aliens, rupturing their environment suits and igniting the methane tanks they carried. Gouts of flame traced wild arcs as the grunts perished. Taking cover behind a building, he noticed an object soaring high, coming in at high speeds. Banshees.

"Sam," Winter barked "New contacts." He unpinned a frag and tossed it to the side. A few seconds later dirt pinged off the walls next to him followed by squeals.

Sam unpacked a special case off his back, taking out a Spartan laser. He lined up the sights and set the timer on the canon.

Three, two one. The lethal ray blasted in a conventional line, cutting through one of the banshees. The vehicle veered to the side and crashed in a heap. The other one fired off a volley of plasma bolts, Sam dodged to the side. Where he stood before was charred glass. The banshee screeched overhead and banked back towards them.

"Sam, HIT EM' AGAIN!" Winter ordered, keeping off the grunts on ground level.

Sam once again set up the sight, holding down the trigger until- Boom! The banshee exploded mid air and descended upon them. It collapsed with its thick trail of smoke shadowing it, crushing over the grunts in a perfect angle towards the two. The ODST's jumped to the side as the wreck passed them. A wave of heat cascaded onto them; boiling their skin for a split-second. Winter made sure Sam was standing, acknowledging his state, before ordering them into the nearest Intel station.

They secured the area, knocking off a few stragglers hiding amongst the equipment. When all was done, Winter made his way into the database sect and linked up with the command pad. He browsed the archive until he came across the corresponding file- Project NOMAD. He initiated a withdrawal of the dossier.

"SATCOM. This is sergeant Winter, leader of Zulu-Four squad. We have acquired Project NOMAD. Request immediate extraction."

"_Acknowledged Zulu-Four," _SATCOM replied, "_Outside is secure, that is your pick-up location. Pelican's postponing dust-off."_

"Roger that SATCOM, we won't keep them waiting. Winter out" He killed the COM link and motioned for Sam to fall in. They jogged double-quick over the two kilometers distance- exiting into the reach of their dropship. A pelican scuffed and dented over two days of hard fighting.

Jackson was operating the turret. He looked at them and shouted."We don't have all day you know."

Winter grinned, and moved into the bay patting the gunner on the back. The engine whined to life.

Sam took off his helmet and scratched his black stubble. "It's a disgrace, this happening. "he said, and leaned against the porthole. "We lose this and we're screwed."

Winter stood next to him and stared out as they elevated into the air- Their were rolling plains, radiant beach's and glistening canopies for as far as the eye could see

"We wont lost this, we can't afford to" he said.

"Keep telling yourself that hero." Sam snorted

The Pelican climbed rapidly through the sky, clouds swiftly passing them. Above the atmosphere was the real war.

In orbit, there were ships of every class pushing their capabilities to defend this planet. Each craft had carbon scoring and holes peppering their hulls. They were all maneuvering around the covenants plasma fire.

Winter preferred to have his feet on the ground, with real dirt, and his ears ringing from the sound of an explosion—a place where he was in control. A base just wasn't home.

The battlefield was.


	3. Chapter 3

**-CHAPTER 3-**

**0400 hours, August 30, 2557 (Military Calendar)\Sol System, Sydney, ONI HQ, planet Earth**

He was dead. He knew it. Winter wiped his brow, agitated as he glanced outside to where the Sydney Harbor bridge stood. The passage was rusted beyond repair and yet workers were still haggling about it, keeping the place working well past its use by. Beyond it was a darkened sky, thunderstorms threatening to move in.

Looking back he moved a hand into his pocket and hastily snatched another piece of gum, tossing it into his mouth. This was bad- real bad. The only time ONI would talk to a grunt like him was when they needed information he wasn't supposed to know. His mind flickered back to the data pad he had received before entering atmo. The sleek design still rested firmly in his pocket, if ONI wanted him dead they wouldn't give him information that was worth a lot, he assured himself. Occupying time, he observed the building. The area was made of marble, with the ONI insignia inscribed into the center; pillars were occupied in an organized fashion while a fountain was placed against a wall to the far end perfectly aligned. Along the walls were paintings of military successes and failures deemed noteworthy.

Yet for all the gloss and shine applied, Winter still felt like had just walked into his own grave. Looking at the clock, the time was nearing . He had been sitting here for two hours, waiting for the Brass to come in. They had taken the captain first, putting her through what Winter assumed was intensive questioning. _At least she gets to walk away _Winter thought grimly, rubbing his wrists recalling when they had arrived.

The captain and him were addressed by ONI officials- as Vadumee expected, what wasn't anticipated was the reception. Held at gunpoint at sight, they were forced into the compartment. The captain was clearly panicked. And she when she was alarmed, Winters survival instinct told him he was dead. What set him off the most was their arrival, as he was thrown into the waiting area.

They procured the captain into the elevator just ahead of him and told him to wait. Left shaken and distraught, he remembered the adage from before he joined up. "When ODST's started trembling in their boots, the logical option is to turn heel and leg the distance". He tittered chewing on his gum for a few seconds and began contemplating the predicament, and the ins and outs of how ONI could get rid of him. The possibilities of coarse, were endless. Public execution, unlikely. Vehicular accident, not a bad choice actually. Bullet to the head, can't go wrong there.

All the thoughts crossed Sergeant Winters mind, doing their best to psyche him out. _Get a hold of yourself man_ he wanted to hit himself. Training had taught him better, to be more controlled. But this was ONI god dammit. A noise cut in, distracting him. Ahead of him, the sound pricked his ears, Winter glanced up towards the doors. They had slid open, two men in uniform emerged. ONI intelligence.

"Sergeant Winter," One of the called "You may now come in." They stood to the side and waited. Winter grasped the head of his chair and forced himself up. Nothing good would come out of this. Nothing. Every step towards the door was painful, the distance seemed to be stretch out before him. He looked behind him to the bridge. This would probably be the last time he saw it. When he reached the guards he cast a careful glance at them; they were tense. ODST's had a reputation anywhere for combat efficiency; they clearly wanted to keep their distance. He entered the elevator, as the sentries walked in and stood at either side of the room. The one to his left entered a code on the wall.

The lift hummed briefly before the encryption registered, Winter felt the ground drop. Winter still felt uneasy, and it wasn't because of who he was about to see. ONI didn't hire rookies, people who were nervous even in the presence of a Spartan were never hired no matter how well in combat they performed. They weren't nervous, but they were combat ready. One of them reached towards their were hostiles.

_Ah shit _Winter thought. Turning to the side so his shoulder faced them, Winter threw his weight into the first one. He slammed against him hard; his opponent coughed as the air was forced out of him. The additional regular was already on him, gun raised. But Winter was prepared. He reached out and clutched the hand that held the weapon, twisting the arm to the side and bending him forward. Winter raised his knee to the mans face as his head jerked back in an involuntary reaction. The gun dropped to the floor as he fell in agony. The fight wasn't over yet. Turning around he deftly dodged the swing of the other. The next throw was parried quickly by Winter before he returned the attack with a solid jab to the jaw. Stumbling back as Winter moved around him, he kicked him firmly into the shin.

The bone moved out of place awkwardly, as he crumpled to the floor holding his leg in pain. Ding! The elevator doors slid open and winter was greeted with a large dimly lit room. ONI. Winter could barely make out the features of each face. Something they clearly wanted. It was designed in a semi-circle so each member could discuss a matter that entered with equal sight, the center of the curvature was an ONI emblem- stained with blood. The blemishes were seen leading to a back door. The captain hadn't made it out after all- like he almost didn't. Winter pushed out his chest, spooks fed off fear. Any sign of it and they would eat him alive, they did just try to kill him. Standing above the gore he saw them communicating amongst themselves. He cleared his throat. They all stopped and stared at him. The man at the front addressed him.

"Sergeant Major Enrick Winter," The voice was cold, devoid of emotion, Major Antik, the only real significant ONI with a name. "You are here under the request of ONI section III. I will admit. We are impressed." Winter became confused. Impressed? He took a step forward, he needed to show the brass balls.

"Until clarification, I will not talk. So far, I am under the assumption that I will not exit this area, sir. Like my captain." His audience was visibly stunned, and aggravated. Not many had the guts and to face a room full of spooks and challenge that authority, those that did didn't get away with it. But Winter so far had no reason to believe he would.

"Sergeant Winter," A female this time, to his left, "I assure you that we never wanted you dead. We just needed to saw how effective you were. Otherwise, you would never have attained a certain disc. The dear captain was simply privy to information that was out of rank. No one is above ONI." This didn't make any sense, he turned back to the elevator. He only now realized those were stun guns. With the handles no longer held, the orange imprint was visible. So if they didn't want him dead, what did they want?

"So what would you have me do." He said, shuffling his feet into a more comfortable decision. Formality was obviously thrown out of the window here.

"The disc sergeant. Everything you need is on the disc."

"So why not have you read it to me."

"Because… there are people we do not trust." Antik explained, "We believe we have been breached. Which is dangerous for anyone alive no matter how far they are away. You are here for the basics."

"So what are basics." Winter said, trying to hide how startled he was.

Major Antik turned a page, "Sergeant Winter, you have… skills. Talents of a man with combat experience that rivals a Spartan. Under normal circumstances we would choose a more" He paused, searching for the right term "Conforming ODST." The man then reshuffled the documents and picked one, holding the paper, he threw it. The folder landed at his feet flat angled towards him. It was a collection of dossiers. Bending down, careful of his surroundings he seized the documents and checked them out. Four people were in it. Each one had areas blanked out. ONI wanted him to only know the required. Even them, it was obvious they were all experts in their fields, respected in their designations. And all were below him in rank.

"We are assigning you a team Winter." The spook informed, "The best of the best." Winter felt like the world had just become taken out from under him. It was all happening so fast. He took a step back.

"I don't understand," He said, concerned for what they had prepared, "Why me sir." The man sighed and turned to another next to him, she was younger. But for some reason, she appeared in charge. Leaning forward the women put her hands together. "We need you. You left the service before the transition of the Spartan IV program." He looked around the room, everyone looked to share the same opinion. "The Spartans are assigned to every branch now but the one they originated from. And all remaining Spartan II's are unavailable; you and your allocated team are one of the few skilled men left that are not in the program. We need your co-operation." She looked winter in the eye, unflinching. He returned the stare, "And if I refuse. Ma'am." The women smiled and indicated behind Winter.

"Then I believe you will join your dear captain." Winter glanced behind him. Another guard had a silenced magnum raised. Winter raised his eyebrows.

"A little overkill isn't it" He turned back to her and waved his hand "There isn't much of a choice, is there?" He was shaken; beads of sweat were trickling down him. They knew it too. This act he came up with was fake bravado, it was the only reason he got away with it. He stood to attention, the only practical response he could think of on short notice. Looking at them he realized this was ONI at their core. People used to say you didn't want to mess with the covenant. They never joined the military. "Alright. I'll do it. Ma'am." She turned back to the major smiling. He nodded and looked at Winter.

"You are dismissed sergeant, thank you." He said. Turning on heel relieved, Winter started to march out of the room.

"—Sergeant, hang on for a second." Winter halted, this couldn't be good.

"I believe I forgot something." Turning around, Winter stared quizzically at Antik "Sir?" He asked, Antik held up a hand to wait and reached into his pocket. Pulling out a case he threw it to him. Winter caught it mid air.

"I would like to be the first to congratulate you." He said, Winter brought the case up to his chest and undid the clasp. Inside lay a brass insignia- the designation of a leader. Captain. "Well done, Captain Enrick Winter. You earned it." Winter stared speechless for a few seconds unable to make sense of this. This couldn't be right. _Must be a mistake_ he thought. Double-checking the badge he saw the etching of Winter finely written into it. This was no mistake.

"Don't be shy Winter, put it on. Tomorrow you and you're team leave. Everything you need to know about the mission will be on that disc, so I expect you to be fully prepared," Antick saluted, "Dismissed Captain." Winter felt a surge of dread. He was no leader, never should be one. Returning the salute, he trudged out of the room gazing at the badge in shock. So he was right, bad things did come out of this.

They always do when he leads.


End file.
